Category: Midway Route Coordinator News

Season’s Greetings RFTW family!

Is it May yet?  So much to talk about.  First, your leadership teams and state coordinators are hard at work planning our 2022 route.  It has been too long since our last Run. We are so excited to get back on the road and support our RFTW mission with our Midway route.  I thank our team and supporters for everything they are doing for us.  Are you registered yet?  Registration is open and you can find all the details on our rftw.us website.  I encourage you to register asap.  Knowing our numbers helps our supporters with their plans for us.

Our hotel and camping list has been submitted to the BOD for publishing on January 1, 2022.  It is important that you make your reservations as soon as you can after the list is published. Rooms book quickly.  Let me stress the importance of understanding that everyone is an Ambassador for RFTW when contacting the hotels.  The hotels can get overwhelmed with calls from our group and not all people who answer the phone are familiar with our group or the arrangements we have in place.  We have cancelled our rooms with them for the last two years in a row.  This has been hard on the hotels and much work has been done to maintain our relationships with them.  Please be patient and polite when dealing with them, especially if things are not going as smoothly as you would like.  Our mission is bigger than us individually, please represent RFTW well.  We are all appreciative of your professional representation of RFTW.  If you have any hotel issues you cannot resolve, please contact our Hotel Coordinator.  Contact information can be found on the rftw.us website under the Midway hub for the Hotel Coordinator.

Speaking of hotels, I am once again holding the hotel raffle.  The prize for this raffle is $1000.00, which is approximately the amount it will take to pay for your hotels excluding your stays in Ontario and Arlington.  Wouldn’t it be nice to have this expense covered for you!  There will be one change to this raffle this year. In the past, the money raised from this would go towards paying for a fuel stop.  This year, for 2022, the money raised from this raffle will go to support the children from Milan Elementary and the Falcon Children’s home which host us.   Midway has always donated to these two schools even during the last two years that our route was cancelled.  I think our route would agree that these children are a great place for us to invest. 

The cost per ticket is $10.00 or you can purchase 10 tickets for $50.00!  If you purchase $100.00 worth, you will get 25 tickets.    If you purchase 10 tickets or more before the end of February, you will receive 2 extra tickets (per 10) for free.  The tickets will be capped at 30 per person to make it as fair as possible.  The drawing will be in Hopewell, VA.  If you would like to purchase the Hotel raffle tickets, please make check out to RFTW and send to:
Ken Dugas
9849 Loblolly Pines Lane
Denham Springs, La. 70726

You may also electronically send the money through Zelle by using my email:  kdugas@pharmasafe.com.  Please send me an email at ken.dugas@rftw.us to let me know if you are sending money.
Thank you in advance for your support of this great fundraising cause.

This week, I updated the leadership and support positions on the contacts page of the Midway Hub on rftw.us.  If you are a team leader, please check it and let me know if you have any changes that need to be made.

Midway is still currently looking for Assistant State Coordinators for New Mexico and Arizona.  These are extremely important positions for our mission.  If you are interested and would like more information about these positions, please contact me.

Wow! So much information at one time.  I will stop here and wish all my RFTW family a very Blessed and Merry Christmas. Happy Holidays and good health to you all, from the Dugas family.

Have I told you lately?…….. I love my RFTW family!

Sincerely,

Ken Six String” Dugas
Midway Route Coordinator

Greetings RFTW family,

I just wanted to take this time to wish all my RFTW family a Blessed and Happy Thanksgiving!
Denise (High Maintenance) and I are so thankful to have you all in our lives. We realize that it is such a blessing to be a part of this mission. I am so proud of the family culture that we have developed on our Midway route and we love all of you.

Our leadership and support positions should have received emails from me as we try to confirm all of the positions for 2022. Please respond as soon as possible.

A couple of positive updates for you. Due to the great efforts of our State Coordinators, it looks like we will be returning to Mother Roads Harley Davison in Kingman and our overnight stop in Forrest City. Our State Coordinators and your leadership team are working hard behind the scenes. Thank you all very much!

This is a short and sweet newsletter. I just wanted to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving!

I have I told you lately?…………………. I love my RFTW family!
is it May yet?

Ken “Six String” Dugas
Route Coordinator – Midway Route

Greetings RFTW family!

It is now November and excitement is growing as we focus on our Midway plans for our 2022 mission. I recently held a zoom meeting with our State Coordinators and their Assistant SCs. It was great to see them again and discuss our route plans. After our 2 years of cancellations, as expected, we will be having to make a few changes to our route. Plans are progressing well. I want to thank the State and Assistant Coordinators for all that they do. Our route and mission could not happen without them!

The State and Assistant Coordinators are some of the most critical, vital, important, hardworking, dedicated…. (did I leave any adjective out?) positions that RFTW has. They are so underappreciated by most, because so much of their work is done “behind the scenes”. I wanted to feature them in this newsletter, because I have so much appreciation for what they do, and want to let everyone know how valuable and important they are for our mission.

Midway has a need for an Assistant State Coordinator for Arizona. In addition to that, we need someone to step up to take over as State Coordinator for New Mexico. Tina Reeves has done an amazing job for us as our New Mexico State Coordinator. However, this will be her last year. She is looking for an assistant to work with to take over for her next year. She has great contacts and will do a great job in preparing the next person to take over. If you are willing to step up and take on one of these essential positions, please contact me and I will put you in touch with the right person. If you live in these states and are all in for RFTW, please consider volunteering to take on this great responsibility.

Midway is determined to make 2022 happen. No one knows what the Covid situation will be. We have submitted an alternative route plan to the BOD at our last meeting should restrictions prevent us from going to some states. The BOD was very supportive of us continuing our efforts. I feel everyone is committed to making 2022 happen, even if it might be different from previous years. All routes are working on alternative plans. ………..IS IT MAY YET!

All team leaders should be confirming that their teams are in place and ready to go. Please let me know if you have any positions that need to be filled.

As we are approaching Veteran’s Day, I want to say thank you to our veterans for their service to our country. WELCOME HOME!

I am looking forward to seeing everyone again and meeting all of our new FNGs!

Have I told you lately?……………………….I love my RFTW family!

Honor, Hope & Healing.
Ken “Six String” Dugas
Midway Route Coordinator

Greetings RFTW family from hurricane battered Louisiana!

Hurricane Ida hit Southern Louisiana hard. I am happy to say that High Maintenance and I are okay and feel very blessed that our home survived with only minor damage. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for many of our other Louisianians, including some of our very own RFTW friends. Some got hit very hard and still do not have electricity! Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. It is a very tough time for many dealing with the results of this disaster.

On a positive note, registration for RFTW 2022 is now open and has been brought up to the twenty first century. We now have registration 100% online. I just completed my registration and the process is easy and worked well. Just go to the RFTW.us website under registration. You will need your license plate number and will have to pay to complete the registration. After you pay, you will need to complete the online waiver.
I want to thank our new BOD members, Ron King and Ted Kapner for getting this done. Great job guys!

For those of you interested in the Sandbox route, please read Bug’s Sandbox RC newsletter for the details of how that will work. He explains the process very well.

I am determined to ride our mission for 2022. We will be working hard to make that happen. Is it May yet?!!!

Honor, Hope, and Healing
Ken “Six String” Dugas
Midway Route Coordinator

Greetings RFTW family!

I hope you all had a great Independence Day holiday. I sure did. I had a pleasant visit from our old friends Mark “Diesel” Breland and Daryl “Top” Neil and their better halves Charlene and Kathy. It was a great time hanging out at the pool with these two past Route Coordinators and great RFTW supporters. I am so ready to get our RFTW family back together for 2022!

With that said, we must get our leadership and support teams built for 2022. I sent emails out to everyone I had on our list for 2021 asking to reply if you have plans to return in 2022. Unfortunately, I did not get many replies. It is important that we know ASAP if you will, or will not be returning for 2022. I know that it is still a long time till next May but our plans require work all year long. It is okay if you cannot give a definitive answer at this time but, if that is the case, please let me know that so we can put you down as questionable. Letting me or your team leader know ASAP would be very helpful and greatly appreciated. I do hope you all can return to our team.

Our Tennessee State and Assistant Coordinators, along with about a dozen other RFTW riders decided to ride the July 4th reunion route that was cancelled. As always, Cookeville was very supportive and happy to see them. They were given VIP seating for the BIG fireworks show and they all had a great time.

The new stop that we had planned for the reunion was at the Sunbright Veteran’s Memorial. The group went there and were greeted by the founder, Vietnam veteran, Charles Webb and his wife JoAnn. The group presented them a Flag donated by TN. US. Representative John Rose, with the certificate showing that it was flown over the US Capital in honor of RFTW to present to Sunbright Veterans Memorial.
It took 10 years for this small town to build the memorial. I was told that they were so happy to see representatives from RFTW there, that it brought tears to their eyes. The riders were very impressed with this stop. Plans are being worked on to see if we can incorporate this memorial as a breakout from Cookeville. We shall see…..

It is with a heavy heart that I tell you that we recently lost two of our RFTW family members. Joel “Polar Bear” Brown, our NM Assistant State Coordinator and Jeff “Breeze” Starks, former Ambassador leader. Please keep them and their family in your prayers. They will be missed.

On a positive note, Will Schaeffler, son of Southern Route’s Arizona State Coordinator, Lori Ann “Leggs” Schaeffler, was in a horrible accident and his survival was in doubt. Fortunately, Will is doing better.   The Road to Recovery will be a long one.  Bills still need to be paid and his home will need some modifications to assist his rehab once he is allowed to go home. 
If you would like to help Will’s Family, Lori said you can send donations directly to her.  There are two ways: Zelle to lschaeffler@comcast.net or Apple Pay to 520-490-7612.  Any amount will make a difference. 

Have I told you lately?……………………….I love my RFTW family!
Is it May yet?

Honor, Hope & Healing
Ken “Six String” Dugas
Midway Route Coordinator

Greetings RFTW family!

I am writing to let you know that we are cancelling the July 2nd reunion in Tennessee. We just did not have the interest to justify the support and resources we had in place. As I mentioned in my last letter, many people did rides for Memorial Day and July 2nd is just too soon to have another event. I appreciate the ones who registered and I am sorry that we must cancel. We will refund any money paid for the reunion.

Now we will begin to set our sights on our 2022 mission. We will make it happen. I hope all of our leaders and support teams will return. We have a great team on Midway and I am honored to work and ride with all of you.

I want to encourage all of you to consider attending the reunions hosted by Southern and Central. We have a little more time before those are here. I will do my best to make them if I can and look forward to seeing everyone who is able to attend. I miss all of you ladies and gentlemen and hope you are all well.

Thank you for your continued support!
Honor, Hope & Healing

Sincerely,

Ken “Six String” Dugas
Midway Route Coordinator

Greetings RFTW family!

I am writing today concerning our “Sunbright Veterans Tour of Honor” reunion in Tennessee. As of this time, we only have about 20 people registered and have hotel rooms booked. 

I understand that many of you made “Memorial Day” rides and have been on the road for many days.  Some of you have just made it back home.  The reunion is right around the corner and July 2^nd will be here before we know it.  For some, this may be too much too soon.  I understand.  Unfortunately, If we do not have big enough interest in the July 2^nd reunion, we will need to cancel.   We feel that having a small showing for an RFTW reunion would do more damage to our efforts and reputation in Tennessee than not having one.  It has taken many years of efforts to establish the amazing support we now have in Tennessee.  We cannot tap into these resources and show up with a handful of people.  Let me give you some information on the support we have lined up by our Tennessee State Coordinators:

• Memphis Sherriff Department will be escorting us. They are planning on having more bikes to support us than we have registered right now!
• Honor guard for Parkers Crossroad Memorial
• Moonshine Harley Davidson is opening just to support us.  They were scheduled to be closed.
• Commissioner of Veterans Services, State Representatives and Senators, US Congressman to attend and speak in Cookeville.
• Cookeville, going all out feeding us and lining up entertainment.
• Escorts in and out of the 2^nd largest firework show in TN.
• US Congressman to attend Sunbright Veterans Memorial

Our TN State and Assistant Coordinators have worked hard to maintain RFTW visibility and support in Tennessee.  We certainly do not want a poor showing to impact our future support.

If you are planning on attending the reunion, please register and book your hotel rooms ASAP.  If we do not have a minimum of 50 bikes confirmed for the reunion by June 15^th, we will be forced to cancel.

The link to register is: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfSddvZrKfLGD_n5nMunmyvPROznSUU6srGHcnpcjujUiB24Q/viewform

Thank you for your support and understanding.

Sincerely,

Ken “Six String” Dugas
Midway Route Coordinator

Greetings RFTW family!

Once again, this year’s Memorial Day was not the same without being with my RFTW family and communities that support our routes. However, RFTW is always in my heart and Memorial Day is still a special day no matter where you are. I know that all of my RFTW family will Never Forget those who have given their all for our country and our freedom. Many of you made your own rides and I appreciate all of you carrying on our mission. I hope you had great trips and made it home safe.

Now that we are in June, I want to remind everyone about our All routes reunion hosted by Midway. It will be here before you know it. I encourage all of you to register and book your hotels ASAP. July 2nd is right around the corner and your early registration will help our planning efforts. We are calling this years reunion in Tennessee the “Sunbright Vets Memorial Tour of Honor” Here is the link on our website: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfSddvZrKfLGD_n5nMunmyvPROznSUU6srGHcnpcjujUiB24Q/viewform

I was looking at the Midway Hub on the RFTW.US website and saw how the info could be confusing. There is tab that says “tour of Tennessee reunion information”. I will ask for that tab to be hid because that was the information for last years reunion! This years information is under the “Sunbright Vets Memorial Tour of Honor” tab. I apologize for any confusion that has caused. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone there! Our Tennessee State and Assistant Coordinators have put together a great reunion plan for us.

It soon will be time to focus on our plans for our 2022 route. Our Midway ARC, Jerry Wilkins and I will be reaching out to our leadership and support teams in the near future. The first thing we need to do for our planning for 2022 is to make sure we have our teams in place. We truly hope that everyone will be returning to their positions for our 2022 route. We would like to have all positions confirmed ASAP.

I appreciate all of the efforts of our Midway team. I know a lot of work has been done over the last two years and it has been very disappointing that we have not been able to implement our plans for the route. I m so thankful for all of you and hope that you will stick with us another year and make our route the best it can be for 2022.

Hope to see you all at the reunion and may God continue to bless America!

Sincerely,

Ken “Six String” Dugas
Midway Route Coordinator